1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of products for use in emergency medical treatment and, more specifically, for use in emergency applications of pressure bandages to a bleeding wound while preventing the person applying the bandage from coming into contact with blood from a wound.
This invention comprises a multi-layer bandage which can be quickly and safely applied to a wound in such a manner that the risk of exposure by the bandage applicant to blood borne pathogens from a wound is avoided or substantially reduced when administering first aid.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The risk of a person contracting a blood borne disease from exposure to another's blood has increased dramatically. For example, recent articles state that, worldwide, the number of cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome ("AIDS") has risen 60% during the period from July, 1993 to July, 1994. See, Maugh, "Outlook is Pessimistic at AIDS Conclave," Los Angeles Times, p. 1, Col. 5, (Aug. 8, 1994). The World Health Organization estimates that the total number of individuals infected with the "human immune deficiency virus" is 17 million. Exposure to AIDS in the workplace can be particularly problematic. For example, an estimated 37 percent of major U.S. employers have dealt with actual or perceived cases involving employees who had either HIV, the human immunodeficiency virus, or AIDS. This is a 65 percent increase from the 1989 figures. See, Klein, et al. "With more businesses having to accommodate HIV-positive employees, companies need guidelines to address federal disability laws and privacy rights," The New York Law Journal, p. B5 (May 9, 1994). More than two-thirds of companies with 2,500 to 5,000 employees report that they have employed at least one HIV-positive employee, and 1 in 12 companies with 500 or fewer employees say that they have employed someone with the HIV infection in the workplace.
In the manufacturing workplace, accidents occur which could result in an employee receiving a wound injury that requires immediate on-site bandaging to staunch the wound's bleeding until it can be later treated in a medical setting. Often, the emergency aid must be administered by person other that the wounded party or victim. However, the person or "good Samaritan" applying this emergency bandaging is exposed to the blood from the victim during the process of applying the bandage to the wound. Thus, there is a potential risk of exposing the person applying emergency aid to the victim's blood and further risk of the applicant contracting any HIV infection from a blood borne pathogen found in the victim's blood. Because of these risks, workers often are reluctant to provide aid to a bleeding co-worker because they are afraid of exposure to blood borne pathogens.
This concern about exposure to blood borne pathogens is now a matter of federal regulation. See, OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Regulations, 29 C.F.R. 1910, 1030 (1993). Under these regulations, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration requires employers to protect employees from HIV and AIDS exposure. Indeed, employers whose employees may be exposed to blood are required to prevent HIV transmission by providing protective gear and implementing written exposure plans and work practices that minimize exposure. A similar concern applies in many other environments, other than the workplace, where such exposure can occur.
Previously, most commercially available bandage products for use in administering emergency aid to a bleeding wound were in the form of gauze type bandages. Gauze products are porous and absorbent by their nature, and the person who is administering such an emergency aid gauze bandage is at risk of exposure to the victim's blood as it absorbed through the porous gauze. Prior to this invention it has been the usual practice for industries to make available to its employees protective gloves to use in conjunction with applying bandage gauze. However, this combination of having the bandage applicant don gloves prior to administering aid is not ideal. Often, the gloves are not immediately available or accessible because of either their location or an oversight in keeping emergency aid stations properly supplied. The gloves and gauze must be purchased and stocked separately, thereby increasing the cost for such protective measures. The use of a glove and gauze combination is cumbersome and significantly increases the time it takes for a person to administer emergency aid to a victim. For example, some gloves are difficult to put on, particularly when the user is excited as result of the emergency conditions. The person must first unwrap and then put on the gloves. Only then can the person unwrap the gauze and safely administer first aid. The separate glove and gauze combination further requires the person administering aid to maintain hand to wound pressure until the gauze can be secured on or about the wound by some other means, such as surgical tape. Gloves also have additional problems, in that certain individuals suffer negative allergic reactions from wearing the gloves.
An invention is needed that will allow an injured person to receive emergency care quickly while at the same time protecting the person giving the care from the risk of contracting a blood borne disease. The invention must comprise all of the useful elements of gauze, gloves and tape into a single product. An invention is needed which would enable the bandage to be secured and pressed against the wound without the need of additional supplies such as surgical tape. An invention is needed in which the emergency bandage can be manufactured inexpensively. A solution to this problem is an emergency pressure bandage which can be applied quickly to the wound, protect the person applying the bandage from exposure to a bloodborne pathogen, and can be secured in a manner that maintains bandage pressure on the wound. The present invention provides the means by which a material that is impermeable to blood comprises the top layer of the bandage, thereby preventing the blood from penetrating the bandage and contacting the person applying the bandage. This top layer of the bandage also provides a holding means which enables the person administering first aid to grasp the bandage quickly and safely and to protect the user's hand while applying the bandage; the impermeable layer protects the portion of the hand and fingers touching the bandage from exposure to blood by preventing blood from penetrating the bandage. Unlike compression bandages and the thin plastic used in commercial, over-the-counter bandages, the invention's impermeable layer must be flexible enough to conform to the wound area, yet it must have, as a secondary benefit, sufficient stiffness to apply pressure to the wound. One or more straps affixed to the top layer of the bandage can be wrapped and secured around the wound area, which enables the bandage to serve as a compress over the wound. A gauze pad is the bottom layer of the bandage and is the layer that is applied onto the wound. As noted above, in the case of larger bandages for use on larger wounds, a non-porous sleeve is provided into which one hand of the person applying the bandage can be inserted, and the bandage held in place, while the straps are secured. The sleeve would provide further protection from blood to the back and sides of the hand of the person applying the bandage.